Jockeys forced to race in total darkness as MID-RACE floodlight failure leads to meeting being abandoned
Jockeys had to use all their skill to guide their horses home
A TERRIFYING situation unfolded after a mid-race floodlight failure forced jockeys to navigate in pitch-black darkness.
The horses were turning for home at Kanazawa racecourse, Japan, on Sunday when the floodlights suddenly turned off, plunging the course into darkness.
The jockeys had no choice but to navigate their way to the line with the help of just the grandstand lights.
Those lights barely illuminated the track and the race was unsurprisingly voided after all the runners completed.
The day’s racing was also abandoned after the race.
It turns out that an incorrectly programmed timer for the course’s floodlights caused the chaos.
A statement by the Kanazawa Race Club read: “In order to ensure fairness in today’s (November 19) Kanazawa horse racing, all races from race nine onwards have been cancelled.
“The eighth race was cancelled due to a power outage to the track lighting during the race, and as it was necessary to confirm the cause, we have decided to cancel subsequent races.
“When we investigated the cause, we discovered that the timer setting for turning off all lights after the race was incorrect.
“We deeply apologise for the inconvenience caused to our fans and related parties.”
Similar scenes occurred at Chelmsford in 2018, when a mid-week meeting was abandoned due to a power cut.
Earlier this year Windsor was plunged into total darkness in a matter of minutes after a storm passed over the course.
Racing kept going on that day, with the storm eventually leaving the area.
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